The Amazing Race: I Thought We Were Playing It Nice (Hanoi, Vietnam) / Riding a Bike is Like Riding a Bike (Ninh Binh, Vietnam) (CBS 18 May 2017)

It’s another double bill of episodes of The Amazing Race, it kind of feels that CBS is trying to rush through the series as quickly as possible.

First up is “I Thought We Were Playing It Nice” (Hanoi, Vietnam): An extreme fear of heights paralyzes one Racer at a Roadblock when faced with bungee jumping 240 feet from a bridge into the Corinth Canal.

Followed by “Riding a Bike is Like Riding a Bike” (Ninh Binh, Vietnam): Teams battle the scorching heat while transporting shrimp baskets for one mile to a local fisherman, and one Racer approaches their breaking point during the exhausting Roadblock.

Remaining Teams in THE AMAZING RACE:
Matt and Redmond
Becca and Floyd
Tara and Joey
London and Logan
Scott and Brooke

Slave To Memory: Cookie and Lucious devise an elaborate plan to take down Diana Dubois and her family once and for all. Andre recovers from his mental breakdown in the hospital, Shine tries desperately to protect his secret and Eddie Barker is concluding his tenure at Empire. Amidst the chaos, someone’s life hangs in the balance.

Within These Walls: Deception (ITV 20 Sep 1975, with Susan Littler)

In Deception Jane Sims is serving a four year sentence for being involved in a armed robbery, she quickly develops a strong friendship with Officer Mary White, Hane is an inveterate liar and quickly has Mary wrapped around her finger.

Mary persuades Charles Radley to give Jane a cushy trustee job in the library (Jane is library officer) and Jane is soon using the opportunity to take advantage, especially when a trio of workmen arrive to fix the pipes in the prison, including the library. One of the men, Billy, happens to know Jane quite well. When Mary leaves Billy and Jane alone together they take advantage of the fact. In the following weeks Mary is shocked to find herself pregnant.

Jane has also arranged an escape attempt after Billy finishes his sentence (he only has a few days left on his sentence) and when Officer White discover what the pair are up to Jane begins blackmailing her to keep quiet.

Things take a dramatic turn when Mary (helped by fellow inmate Rosie Doolan) miscarries the baby she is carrying. In a twist she accuses Charles Radley of being the father (the pair had briefly spent a few minutes alone with her when interviewing her for the librarian position).

Deception is quite the hard hitting episode as it happens, touching on lesbianism, abortion, illicit sex in prison and blackmail, all handled with a suitably delicate touch of course.

A very strong supporting cast sees Susan Littler as the deceitful Jane Sims, Gwen Taylor as the naive Officer White and Stephen Yardley as a builder working at Stone Park.

NCIS: Double Down (CBS Dec 12, 2017 with James Morrison)

Double Down: As Torres and Sloane run protection detail for U.S. Senator John Phillips (James Morrison) in Afghanistan for the holidays, they must urgently return to the states after hearing the senator’s son is in the ICU.

Also, Gibbs and the team investigate the altercation that caused the life threatening injuries to the senator’s son.